Reading about Orlando, I feel the need so say or do something. What, I don’t know. These things always leave me so helpless. But it’s not about me, I know that. There are people out there who can do something and, to them, I must urge: we need gun control now.
We need peace now.
Understanding, right now.
This isn’t usually a political blog, but I can’t just sit here and not talk about this. Not when people are dying.
End violence. End hate.
For too many people, it’s already too late.
Having just turned twenty-seven a couple of days ago, I thought it might be nice to mark the occasion by listing twenty-seven things I’ve done or achieved, so far. The list is (mostly) in chronological order, starting with the earliest things first. One thing I learnt about myself from compiling this list, is that I tend to do the same things multiple times.
Before I take part in an event – big or small – my nerves are on edge. I feel sick, and flighty, and weepy.
…so, that’s me, pretty much now-ish. My reading at Women Aloud NI is happening TOMORROW!
Situation clearly dire, I just had to run out for a stack of emergency chocolate (don’t eat your feelings, kids!). And I made myself so flustered that I almost said thank you to the cashier, completely forgetting that I’d just used a self-serve till :-/
Now, seeing as it took me six attempts and three Google searches to spell the word dire correctly, I’m gonna go eat said chocolate and have a little cry to myself.
How are you this evening?
If you find out youāve been doxed (had your private information acquired and shared online), you have my genuine sympathies. Iām not suggesting you follow all of the steps below (beyond numbers six, seven, and nine), this is just how I reactedā¦
There are a few ways I could start this blog post ā this is not the blog post I had planned to be writing; I was actually feeling really productive and had planned to get shit done when someone ruined my night; Iāve recently been diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder, and I donāt need any of this stress right now ā but all of that boils down to this: last night, some guy I have never met, decided it was appropriate to share part of my address on Twitter because Iām taking part in an event and his partner isnāt.
Yup. For real.
Iāve considered naming and shaming, but have ultimately decided not to give any more details about the situation ā at least not right now ā beyond saying the person did it to more than just myself, and that heās been reported to Twitter for it.
Tomorrow, I will be promoting the event as I had originally planned, in a separate post not connected to this negative crap. I donāt want to risk bringing a really positive movement down any further. I just really needed to vent.
This is so far from okay, but I will not be scared into silence. Not over something so stupid.
Having that anxiety disorder I mentioned, and after watching my friend go through a much worse case of doxing just before Christmas, Iād been worried something like this might happen to me, and I recently bought extra security for this site ā insuring that my personal details arenāt on who.is, as a result.
The take-away message is that people can still get your details easily enough. I recommend doing some searches to see whatās floating around online about you (start with Google, but also look at pipl.com), and adjusting your privacy settings accordingly.
Writing is a real job and, more specifically, itās my full time job. Yes, full time! I may well be preaching (/ranting) to the converted here, but I need to get this off my chest.
For some, writing is a hobby. They donāt put all their time into it, and they donāt get money back out of it. But, for others, it can be and often is a legitimate job.
I am sick of people talking about my career in terms of āthat thing you do until you grow up and choose a proper profession.ā These comments are often meant well, but that only makes them more infuriating. People are worried that Iām wasting my time, or fearful about my financial stability. Which is nice, in a way, but also rather patronizing.
I am an adult, and whether I have money to pay my bills is ā shockingly ā none of my friend or familyās business. The older I get, the more I realize that there is no such thing as a āsafeā career path. No job is completely secure.
Sure, some are more secure than others, but if thereās going to be risk no matter what, why not aim for what you really want?
This may come across as bitter, but thatās not how I mean it. Iām simply frustrated by the attitude that my life has to fit a very narrow specification in order to constitute being acceptable.
No, I donāt work nine-to-five, Monday to Friday; and yes, I do mostly work from my bedroom, but I put in a hell of a lot of effort, and Iām not being particularly risky or ridiculous in doing so, Iām bravely living the dream.
This has been a public service announcement. Thank you and goodnight.
Following up on my last blog post, I can now tell you that not only will my work be in the exhibition, starting Thursday, but Iāve been asked to read at the event, too. And, if thatās not enough, Iāve also been told thereāll be a photo-op with the Mayor. Exciting times!
This has really come out of knowing the organizers. In previous years I considered entering a poem but, in the end, I shied away. This year, however, I was greatly encouraged, and itās made all the difference.
On that note: I went to the local poetry recital I blogged about, as planned, and Iāve decided to enter the FSNI competition after all.
My partner has been telling me I need to push myself/self promote more, and I have to admit that I think heās right. Even if I donāt come anywhere near winning either of the competitions, Iām already glad I entered. Even if my artwork doesnāt sell, Iāll have still made it, and Iāll be able to keep it and show people.
This week, and going forward, Iām feeling positive. If thereās something I want to do, Iām going to go for it. Who knows where it will lead me?
On this day two years ago – July 28th, 2013 – I wrote and posted my first ever piece of fan fiction. Since then, fanfic has become a big part of my life, both as a writer and as a reader. It’s my release for when my novel isn’t going the way I want, or when life isn’t going the way I want, and I find it generally good writing practice as well. So, I thought I’d share some statistics in celebration of the anniversary.Ā 
Basic Stats:
I have written:
I thought some people might be interested to hear about what a full-time writer/author does all day, so I thought Iād share a little insight into my work.
It must be pointed out, however, that the following just applies to me, and that other writers can and will have different schedules. What I love about writing is the flexibility it has, and Iām really interested to find out about what other authors get up to (if you are an author and youāre reading this, please leave a comment to compare and contrast your experience).
But enough pre-amble, here are the basics: I work full time (which is to say, a minimum of thirty hours a week), I work from home (translation: my bed), and I write in a number of areas (fiction, non-fiction, fan fiction, poetry, etc.) and my daily tasks often donāt involve writing at all.
That last point might surprise you the most but, you see, I am currently my own agent, editor, publisher, and social media manager and this leads me to doing a range of tasks that a lot of other writers will never think about let alone encounter.
In this past month I have… Continue reading
One of my life goals is to have fewer little pieces of paper surrounding me, each containing reminders of tasks undone. A clear āto doā list is the surest sign of freedom, Iām sure. But right now, what I want to pin on my notice board of stuff, is a humble note to self:
You donāt have to do everything at once
Indeed, you donāt have to do everything
Life does not require you to be ready
I guess itās not really news that the Internet is a strange place but, for me, it got a little bit more weird than usual, recently. As self obsessed as it may potentially sound, I have a Google Alert set up for my name, meaning that I get an email pretty much anytime someone mentions me on the Internet. Personally I find it quite helpful, and I would recommend it to anyone trying to build an online platform, especially as itās free, but thatās not what I wanted to talk about today. Today I wanted to document a strange thing that happened, which my Google Alert (fittingly) alerted me to: someoneās set up a complicated kind of scam linked to an illegal version of one of my books!
I donāt know the ins and outs of how it works but, basically, thereās a website out there in which Fake Person A asks where they can get a free electronic version of a specific book by me, and Fake Person B replies with a very dodgy link to what I believe to be a virus. Not only a virus, but one you have to pay to download. And not only a single payment, but a set of monthly payments that seems difficult to unsubscribe from once set up.
How do I know these people are fake? Well, this is the weird part ā every time you load the page it tells you itās on a different website, the peopleās names have changed, the linked profiles donāt exist, and the messages are written ever so slightly differently. I canāt imagine what kind of coding goes into something like that but, actually, Iām a little impressed.*
Anyway, I guess the moral to the story is to keep an eye on what people are doing, and donāt try to download any illegal books.
The stupidity of the thing is that subscription to the āfreeā download site would cost more than the official eBook version anyway. *shakes head and sighs deeply* Stay safe online kids!
*If youāre wondering, Google really frowns on such things, and Iām confident theyāll block the link soon.
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